House of Torment May Never Let You Leave

If the House of Torment can spook an insider, imagine the effects on those who don't know any better.

"Even I'm scared of what is going on in the House of Torment, especially when I walk through it," House of Torment vice president Jon Love said. "Whenever I walk through it, our actors hide in different places and intentionally jump out and try and scare me ... and they succeed every time."

The Austin, Texas, haunted house is one of the largest and most terrifying Halloween attractions in the nation. With more than 20,000 square feet of roaming creatures, gigantic animatronic monsters and well-placed special effects, the House of Torment is a more-than-formidable challenge for even the bravest of heart.

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Peek Inside the House of Torment

It is in its eight year of operation as a nationally recognized house of horror. The Travel Channel called it "one of America's scariest haunted houses," and the Wall Street Journal dubbed it "20,000 square feet of terror." It's also No. 9 on Hauntworld magazine's Top 13 Haunted Houses in 2010. And it doesn't fail to deliver.

The house offers two attractions this year: the Nightmare Mansion and the House of Torment. Nightmare Mansion is a theatrically driven horror show that mirrors a play, with actors giving lines on a stage, but also scaring the pants off visitors at the same time.

The House of Torment, the main attraction, is a hellish maze of monsters and special affects designed to mirror a post-apocalyptic wasteland filled with darkness and surprises around every corner.

While the House of Torment is a world-class scare, it is open to all ages. It it is designed to be scary, Love said, but fun as well. And it's OK to bail if you realize halfway through the maze that you can't take it anymore.